The Streets in Dubai

Mike Skinner brings his Brit hop beats to Barasti Beach

By
Time Out Dubai staff
20 March 2011

Barasti is no stranger to the stars of yesteryear playing the last three of their 15 minutes of fame to a largely uninterested crowd, but once in a while genuine talent arrives to remind us all how it should be done. Flanked by his duo of singers and tight, focused band, Mike Skinner has a presence that commands respect – slowing down the tempo with Dry Your Eyes, and blowing the crowd to smithereens with Fit But You Know It. He crowd-surfed and chatted incessantly to a man wearing a Metallica T-shirt (‘We’re going to mosh’); persuaded everyone to get down on their knees, admonishing one man who refused (‘Nobody likes a hero, my friend’) and had the entire crowd eating out of his hand. Let’s hope we see more gigs like this on our shores this year.